Smoking: Working Through Withdrawal

Living with Heart Disease…

Smoking: Working Through Withdrawal

As your body adjusts to not smoking, you will most likely go through a short period of withdrawal. This will pass. Talk with your health care provider and cardiac team about what your going through. The following are tips to help you manage the first few weeks without smoking.

Be Prepared

Nicotine is a powerful and addictive drug. Not smoking can bring on withdrawal symptoms including mood swings, lower energy and trouble thinking clearly. These symptoms will go away in time.

Keep Yourself Busy

Find activities to keep you busy. This will act as a distraction when you get the urge to smoke. Activity makes it less likely for you crave a cigarette. Below are a few activities for you to try when the urge strikes:

• Garden • Play a game with your kids or grandkids • Walk around the block • Stretch your arms and shoulders • Drink a glass of water • Brush your teeth • Go outside to get some fresh air • Exercise

Munch on Healthy Snacks

Here are a few snacks to keep your mouth busy while your urges to smoke pass:

• Crunchy snacks: apple slices, carrot or celery sticks with nonfat dip, pretzels, rice cakes or air-popped popcorn • Sweet snacks: angel food cake, low-fat cookies or muffins, sugarless gum or hard candy • Creamy snacks: fat-free pudding, yogurt or applesauce

Living with Heart Disease…

Learn from Slipups

If you slip up and have a cigarette, this does not mean you have failed. This can be a chance for you to learn. Realize why you smoked. Ask yourself, “What was I doing when I smoked?” Were you with a smoker? Were you lonely? Once you find this out, you can then try to prevent this from occurring again.

Learn to take control. If you slip up again, put the cigarette out.

Get Support

• Ask a friend if you can call and talk when you get the urge to smoke • Ask friends and family members not to smoke around you or keep cigarettes in the house • Ask a friend or family member who smokes to quit with you

My Quit Contract

Signing a contract can make you feel a stronger commitment to quitting. Ask a friend or family member to witness your signing. Be sure to ask someone who believes you can quit.

I,______________________________, will quit smoking on ___________________ and will call my support person for help if I slip and smoke again.

My signature:

My support person’s signature: